Time-lapse photography. We’ve all seen it and I am sure that many people have grown tired of it. However, I think there will always be a place for it based on how it helps to tell a story. As technology continues to evolve, so do the opportunities to capture things that used to be impossible – and do so in an almost immediate fashion. The ability to quickly view and share your work has allowed many people to do what they love and make a good living doing it. On this page, you will find out how to shoot a time-lapse from start to finish.

This series was developed as a resource for filmmakers and time-lapse photographers. All content was developed based on my personal experiences. If you talk to another shooter, they will likely have a different approach to share with you – which I think is the coolest part!

Quick Start Guide

Not interested in learning the in’s and out’s and want to just focus on the basics? Check out my quick start guide to get started!

Digging Deeper

Finding a passion in the work you do is an essential part of living a satisfied life. Being able to take your passion and turn it into a job is what many people strive for. Now many people may be wondering, what does it take? The answer is simple. Determination, dedication, hard work, and a desire to continually push to learn and evolve. Half the pleasure of going out to shoot is the journey that is required to get to the location. The better location, the harder it is to access.

Now you must ask yourself, why is this important? Again, the answer is simple – A desire to break free from the 9 to 5. For me, what makes time-lapse photography so fascinating is that it requires patience. It is the one activity that requires you to take a step back and take in your surroundings – sometimes for only a few minutes and other times for hours. The most important thing is to get out and shoot. Like anything, practice makes perfect. Because of the diversity of ways to approach shooting a time-lapse, this page will only focus on the basics with a few helpful tips to improve your skill set.

The focus of the series is to educate. I want to give an extensive look into shooting a time-lapse from composition to post-production and monitization. If there is something specific that you would like to see covered, please contact us!

Pre-Production

Pre-production is by far the most important part of the process for not only time-lapse photography but filmmaking as a whole. By being prepared from the start, production and post-production will go way smoother. In this section, I will walk you through the essential gear you will need to capture your shot as well as how to prepare for your shoot before even stepping a foot out your front door. I will also walk you through how to break down your story, how to breakdown your shots/shot lists, how to schedule and finally how to scout before even seeing the location. To view episode 2 which covers story, scheduling & scouting, click here.

Note: Many links located below relate to both time-lapse photography as much as filmmaking as a whole. As such, I tried to be as broad with the subject matter as possible so it relates to both.

STORY BREAKDOWN

Time-lapse Training

PREPARING SHOT LISTS

Time-lapse Training

LOCATION SCOUTING

Time-lapse Training

SCHEDULING

Time-lapse Training

GEAR BREAKDOWN

Time-lapse Training

CALL SHEETS

Time-lapse Training

Production

For me, the production phase is the easiest part of the process. Once the time-lapse is setup, you are able to sit back and take in your surroundings. In this section, I will go over how to control your camera as well as how to add motion to your shot using a variety of methods.

CAMERA SETTINGS

Time-lapse Training

STATIC TIME-LAPSES

Time-lapse Training

MOTION TIME-LAPSES

Time-lapse Training

DAY TO NIGHT TIME-LAPSES

Time-lapse Training

ASTRO Time-lapses

Time-lapse Training

HDR Time-lapses

Coming Soon

HYPERLAPSES

Coming Soon

Post Production

In this section I will walk through post-processing methods, compositing, and exporting based on your delivery needs.

SMOOTHING

Time-lapse Training

ARCHIVING

Time-lapse Training

PROCESSING

Coming Soon

DE-FLICKERING

Coming Soon

Monitization

Passive income as well as hired gun shoots are the true goal of all these posts. I want to provide the skill-set as well as the knowledge to make money off of the work you’ve put in. Check back soon as I ever posts focusing on how to generate leads and build your passive income portfolio.